The new online resource released on the DfE's website last month is intended to enable providers to compare the funding they receive for the 15 hours of free nursery education for three-and four-year-olds with that in other local authority areas.
The Foundation Years Benchmarking Tool enables users to view the amount of funding from the Dedicated School Grant (DSG) that local authorities allocate to early years, so that providers can see how funding is split between private, voluntary and independent settings, nursery schools and nursery classes in schools, as well as how much is spent per pupil.
The benchmarking tool is based on Section 52 returns, which local authorities have to submit every year. From the spreadsheets, it appears that some local authorities have verified the DfE figures, while others have not.
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